Summer Reading Plan for Preschoolers and Young Children Arranged by: Cheri Gamble

Week 1: June 9-13 God is Eternal – He has always existed, and He always will exist! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 90:1-2. To do: Draw a circle on a piece of paper. Ask your child to try to find where the circle begins and where it ends. It's hard to find, isn't it? Guess what . . . God doesn't have a beginning or an end, either. He has always been!! _____ Tuesday: Read Genesis 1:1 To do: Take a nature walk with your child and talk about all the cool things you see. Remind your child that God made all of it! _____ Wednesday: Read John 1:1-4. To do: Talk about how Jesus is called the Word, and how He was involved in creating everything. Draw a picture with your child of his favorite parts of creation. _____ Thursday: Read Revelation 4:9-11 To do: Talk to your child about heaven. Give your child yellow sidewalk chalk and help him draw a picture in your driveway of what he thinks heaven will look like. _____ Friday: Read Revelation 21:5-7. To do: Talk to your child some more about heaven. There will be no sadness in heaven. Give him a bandaid and have him put it on his leg to remind him that he will never hurt in heaven.

Week 2: June 16-20 God is Holy – there is nothing impure or dirty found in Him at all! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 24:3-4 To do: Let your child play in mud. Then talk about how dirty the mud got him. How can he be made clean again? He has to wash! Help him wash the mud off. Then talk about how when we do bad things, it makes us dirty to God. Only God can make us clean again! How does he do this? Through JESUS!! _____ Tuesday: Read Isaiah 6:1-8. To do: Give your child a piece of coal and let him make a drawing with it. As he is drawing, talk about what Isaiah saw and how he needed to be made clean before he could serve God. _____ Wednesday: Read Luke 4:33-35. To do: Act this story out with you child using whatever toys you have. He can make one of his toys yell really loud and move all over. Then one of you says, “Be Quiet” and the “toy” should stop. _____ Thursday: Read Romans 12:1-2 To do: Talk about how Jesus wants us to do things for him happily. What are some things your child can do for Jesus? Have him lie down on a large piece of paper (or tape several smaller pieces of paper together.) Trace an outline of his body on the paper. Then help him come up with ways he can use different parts of his body to serve God. Write those ways on that body part. _____ Friday: Read 1 Peter 1:15-16. To do: Talk again about what it means to be clean. Have your child help you wash the windows in the house. Clean them until they are as clean as you can get them. Explain how the windows didn't clean themselves! We also can't get rid of all of our dirt (sin) ourselves. We need Jesus! Discuss this with your child as you clean the windows.

Summer Reading Plan for Preschoolers and Young Children Arranged by: Cheri Gamble

Week 3: June 23-27 God is Faithful – He will not let you down. What He says, He will do! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 89:1 To do: Sing a song with your child! Let your child sing that song to an adult . . . in that way he is proclaiming God's faithfulness to another generation! _____ Tuesday: Read Daniel 3. To do: This is the passage about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. It may be hard to read the whole thing to your child, but I had a hard time breaking it up. Read what you can and then tell the rest of the story. Then act this story out with your child. Have him make some flames and a furnace out of an old box and construction paper. He can even “throw” his stuffed animals in the “furnace” (or get in it himself). Discuss how God was faithful in this passage. _____ Wednesday: Read Daniel 6. To do: This is the passage about Daniel and the Lion's Den. Read what you can and then tell the rest of the story. Then act this one out. Make lion masks out of paper plates. You may wish to enlist other members of the family to help with this. Your child will enjoy being the lions while someone from your family is thrown into the den! Discuss how God was faithful to Daniel. _____ Thursday: Read Luke 22:42-44. To do: Talk about what was happening in this passage. Why do you think Jesus was having such hard time? Draw tear drops on a piece of paper and have your child draw a picture of Jesus on the cross in the tear drop. Pray with your child, thanking God for being faithful! _____ Friday: Read 1 John 1:9. To do: Draw a heart on a piece of white paper. Have your child list different sins. Each time he tells you a sin, have him make a big, black mark on the heart. Discuss how you can not erase the crayon mark off – the heart is now stained with sin. The same thing happens to us when we sin, but how does our heart get clean again? Through JESUS!!

Week 4: June 3 – July 4 God is Omnipotent – He is more powerful than anything or anyone else! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 29:3-5. To do: Thunderstorms are very powerful, aren't they? God is more powerful than that! Have your child make a “thunderstorm” out of construction paper. (He can cut out bolts of lightning from yellow paper and glue it on blue. He can also use glitter and other art supplies. Be as creative as you want!) Discuss God's power while he is making the picture. Also, be ready to talk about God's power the next time you experience a storm with your child!! It will help drive this point home! _____ Tuesday: Read 1 Kings 18:30-39. To do: Gather some stones and wood and act this story out with your child. Let him make an “altar” with the stones and lay the wood on top. Pour lots and lots of water on top of it. Discuss how amazing it was that God was able to cause a fire to come. God is POWERFUL!! _____ Wednesday: Read Mark 4:35-41. To do: Make a boat out of a box (or you can even use your couch and blankets) and act out this story. Talk about how Jesus had more power than the storm and was able to make the storm stop. _____ Thursday: Read Mark 5:1-13 To do: Help your child make a pig mask out of paper plates and construction paper. Have him pretend to be the pigs in this story. For added fun, eat bacon and eggs after reading the story! _____ Friday: Read Philippians 3:20-21.

Summer Reading Plan for Preschoolers and Young Children Arranged by: Cheri Gamble

To do: Even though we live here on earth, we will one day be in heaven with Jesus. Have your child make a “driver's license” showing that his true address is in heaven. Be as creative as you want with this . . . you could take his picture and have him glue it on a piece of cardstock, or he could draw his own picture. The important part is that you talk to him about what it means to be a citizen of heaven. NOTE: If you should happen to watch a fireworks display this week, use that as an opportunity to talk to your child about the power of God. “Do you hear how loud the fireworks are? Remember that the Bible says that the voice of God thunders! God is even more powerful than these fireworks!”

Week 5: July 7-11 God is Omniscient – He knows every single thing! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 139:13-16 To do: Show your child an ultrasound picture of him. Talk about how God is the one who formed him when he was inside of his mom. God knew him then and still knows him now! _____ Tuesday: Read Jeremiah 1:4-5 To do: Look at more baby pictures together. Stress how God made him just the way he wants him to be. God knows him and loves him! _____ Wednesday: Read Mark 2:1-12 To do: Have your child lie down on a “mat” and pretend that he can't move. Talk about the miracle that Jesus performed. Tell your child that he is healed and let your child get up and run around the house. Doesn't it feel good to be healed? How do you think the man felt when Jesus healed him? _____ Thursday: Read John 18:2-5. To do: Talk about how Jesus knew what was going to happen to him next. Discuss what that was and how Jesus knew he was going to be going to the cross and dying for our sins. Make a colorful cross art project using tissue paper or torn construction paper pieces. Make an outline of a cross and have your child glue torn pieces of tissue paper or construction paper in the outline. Discuss what Jesus did for him while completing the art project. _____ Friday: Read Romans 8:26-27. To do: Discuss prayer with your child. Sometimes we don't know how to pray or what to pray for, but God will help us! Help your child pray.

Week 6: July 14-18 God is Loving: He loves YOU and wants you to know that! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 136. To do: Teach your child the refrain that is found throughout this chapter. Then give your child a shaker (or make one using an empty plastic bottle and beans or rice). Read the chapter, having your child say the refrain and shake his instrument every time the refrain is said. _____ Tuesday: Read Jeremiah 31:3 To do: Stress how much God loves your child. Say, “How much does God love you?” Then stretch out his arms to make the shape of a cross and say, “This much!” Do this over and over with your child, until his interest fades. _____ Wednesday: Read John 13:1-5. To do: Talk about the significance of Jesus washing his disciples feet. Then take your child and wash his feet. Talk about how much you love him and how much Jesus loves him while you are

Summer Reading Plan for Preschoolers and Young Children Arranged by: Cheri Gamble

doing this. Turn this into a tickle time if you want! _____ Thursday: Read 1 John 2:3-6 To do: Talk about the importance of obedience. Play a game of “Simon Says” to practice obedience. _____ Friday: Read 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. To do: Talk about how love is kind. Have your child come up with some ways he can show kindness to others. Have him make a kindness collage using old magazines. Watch for ways your child shows kindness and encourage him when he does.

Week 7: July 21-25 God is Merciful: He forgives those who ask, even if they don't deserve it! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 32:5 To do: Talk about how we can't hide our sins from God! We need to ask Him to forgive us! Play a game where you take turns hiding an object and trying to find it. Each time the object is found, say, “Oh no! The sin was found out! We shouldn't hide our sins, we should confess them and ask for forgiveness!” _____ Tuesday: Read Genesis 8:2-5. To do: Tell the story of Noah to your child. Then act it out. Help your child make his own boat and then have him fill it with his stuffed animals. Have lots of fun with this, but remember to share how God was showing mercy to Noah by saving him from this flood. _____ Wednesday: Read Luke 7:36-38 To do: Spray some of your perfume on your child. Talk about what the woman in this story did and why. _____ Thursday: Read Matthew 18:21-35. To do: Have your child count as high as he can. Share with him that he needs to forgive people that many times and MORE!!! _____ Friday: Read Psalm 51:1-4. To do: Give your child a bar of soap. This is your special soap to clean your body, but who can clean your sins away? Only Jesus! Help your child carve the name of Jesus into the soap. Remind him of this every time he takes a bath and uses this soap.

Week 8: July 28 – August 1 God is Sovereign: He is in complete control over everything and can do whatever He wants! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 46:1-3. To do: Talk about how we don't need to be afraid because God is in control of everything. Draw a picture of a mountain on a piece of paper. Have your child tell you things he is afraid of and write these on smaller strips of paper. Have your child glue these strips on the mountain. Then give him a crayon and let him color over them. Remind him that he does not need to be afraid! _____ Tuesday: Read Genesis 11:1-8. To do: Help your child construct a tower as tall as he can using blocks. Discuss what happened at the tower of Babel. For added fun, teach your child a few phrases in a different language and encourage him to use those phrases throughout the day.

Summer Reading Plan for Preschoolers and Young Children Arranged by: Cheri Gamble

_____ Wednesday: Read Matthew 8:1-4. To do: Draw an outline of a person on a piece of paper. Have your child draw dots all over the outline to represent leprosy. Then talk about the miracle that Jesus performed in curing the leprosy. _____ Thursday: Read John 19:8-12. To do: Talk about how Jesus let Pilate and the others kill him because he knew he had to die for our sins. Help your child make a thank you card for Jesus. _____ Friday: Read Philippians 2:8-11. To do: Talk about how one day everyone will bow down to Jesus. Help your child make a poster that says, “Jesus is Lord”.

Week 9: August 4-8 God is Just: He will not let evil go unpunished! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 9:7-8. To do: Talk about how God is a judge. Have your child play “judge”. Make a throne for him to sit on. Then bring up several of his stuffed animals or toys and tell your child what their “crimes”. Let your child decide what to do to them. Then talk about how God will judge everyone, but if we have Jesus, we don't need to be afraid of His judment. _____ Tuesday: Read 1 Samuel 3:1-13. To do: Act out this story with your child. Have him pretend to be sleeping. Then call his name and have him respond how Samuel did. Have fun acting out the story together. _____ Wednesday: Read Matthew 7:1-5. To do: Explain this passage to your child. Get a piece of wood and have him draw pictures thanking God for his forgiveness on the piece of wood. _____ Thursday: Read Matthew 25:31-33. To do: Talk about how God will separate the people and put those who are Christians on one side and those who are not on the other. Only those who are Christians will go to heaven. Play a sorting game where you have two different groups of items to separate from one another. (Example: different color marbles). Discuss the passage as you play. _____ Friday: Read Romans 14:10-13. To do: Help your child draw a picture of what he thinks it will look like before the judgment seat of God. (Example: a throne with a king sitting on it and people standing before the king).

Week 10: August 11-15 God is Good: He has shown His goodness to people in the past and He continues to show His goodness to us today! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 100. To do: Help your child practice this Psalm. Have him think of things he is thankful for and shout those out. Put some music on and have him sing along, or help him make his own musical instrument and play along with the music. _____ Tuesday: Read 2 Kings 4:1-7. To do: Make a blessing jar. Just like the widow gathered jars for oil, gather a jar and fill it with praises. Then “pour” the praises out and share with others what you praise God for! _____ Wednesday: Read Mark 10:17-22.

Summer Reading Plan for Preschoolers and Young Children Arranged by: Cheri Gamble

To do: Help your child go through his possessions and decide on a few things he can give away. Bag these and help your child take them to a local charity. _____ Thursday: Read John 10:11-16. To do: Explain this passage to your child. Then trace an outline of a sheep on a piece of paper have your child glue cotton balls to the sheep to make his wool. Every time he glues on a cotton ball, have him share one way that God has been good to him. Help him think of ways if you need to! _____ Friday: Read Ephesians 2:8-10. To do: Help your child think of a project he could do that would be a “good work”. Do this with him. (Example: pull weeds for a neighbor, make a card for an elderly person, visit a nursing home, etc.)

Week 11: August 18-22 God is Wise: Not only does He know everything, He knows perfectly how to use that knowledge! _____ Monday: Read Psalm 119:97-104. To do: Eat bread with honey (or biscuits with honey). Discuss how wisdom is sweeter than honey. It is good to be wise! _____ Tuesday: Read 1 Kings 3:3-9 To do: Ask your child what he would ask for if he were told he could get whatever he wanted. Write each of these “wishes” on a piece of paper. Then talk about how wisdom is better than all of these. Write the word “wisdom” over all the items on his list. _____ Wednesday: Read Luke 2:41-52. To do: Look through a scrapbook with pictures of your child and talk about how he is growing. Talk about how it is important that he grow in wisdom as well as in size! _____ Thursday: Read Matthew 7:24-29. To do: Sing “The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock” with your child. Help him build a structure with blocks and talk about how we need to build our lives on Jesus. _____ Friday: Read James 1:5. To do: Talk about how wisdom is a gift. Before today's reading, write the word “Wisdom” on a piece of paper and then wrap it up like a present. Have your child open the present. Then read today's scripture and share how wisdom is a gift. What are some other gifts God gives us?

Congratulations! You have completed the Summer Bible Reading Plan with your child! Do something special with your child to celebrate!